Anchoring device for fastening cladding panels to a wall

ABSTRACT

An anchoring device for fastening cladding panels to walls of buildings has a flat band of an essentially rectangular cross-section that is provided with spaced holes arranged one after another in a longitudinal direction. An upper end of the band is connected to a fastening part. A bolt that is inserted into one of the holes fastens the band to a fastening element that is attached to the cladding panel. The fastening element comprises a supporting member and an essentially parallel counter member. The supporting member and the counter member are spaced at a distance over a portion of their respective longitudinal dimension whereby the distance corresponds at least to the thickness of the band. The band is inserted into the space between the supporting member and the counter member. A second of the band is bent directly above the supporting member, whereby the supporting member serves as a bending edge.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an anchoring device for fasteningcladding panels to walls of buildings whereby the anchoring devicecomprises a flat band of a rectangular cross-sectional shape that isprovided with spaced holes arranged one after another in a longitudinaldirection. An upper end of the band is connected to a fastening partwith a bolt that is inserted into one of the holes, thereby fasteningthe band to a fastening element that is to be connected to the claddingpanel.

An anchoring device for fastening cladding panels to a fasteningsurface, for example, a building wall, is known from DE-OS 37 21 452.This device allows for a coarse and a fine adjustment of the desiredlength of the anchoring device. The coarse adjustment is achieved byproviding a perforated band through which a screw is inserted into afastening element of the cladding panel. A hole or perforation isselected that corresponds to the desired length of the band. After thecoarse length of the band is predetermined, the band must be bent in adefinite distance above the chosen perforation with the aid of a bendingdevice. Otherwise, the cladding panel will not hang in a verticalposition. This bending step is complicated and time consuming. Also, theprecision of the bending step depends on the skill of the work man.After the bending has been carried out the anchoring device must bescrewed to the cladding panel. It is also disadvantageous that thedistances between the respective fastening means in the wall and thefastening positions of the cladding panels must correspond exactlybecause it is not possible to correct a horizontal deviation.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to improve ananchoring device of the aforementioned kind such that a fast, simple andsecure mounting of the anchoring device, including also the bending stepof the band, is provided without the need for auxiliary means, forexample, bending devices.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

This object, and other objects and advantages of the present invention,will appear more clearly from the following specification in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 represents a first embodiment in a perspective view without thecladding panel:

FIG. 2 shows a vertical cross-sectional view of the bolt 8 of a claddingpanel with an anchoring device according to FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of the device ofFIG. 1;

FIGS. 4, 5 show further variants of the embodiment according to FIG. 2;

FIGS. 6a-c show an embodiment of the anchoring device with abayonet-type locking of the bolt;

FIG. 7 shows the supporting member and the counter member formed asangled pieces and supported by profile irons;

FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a cladding panel with ananchoring device according to FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 shows a variant of the embodiment of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 shows an embodiment of the anchoring device with a differentforce distribution onto the reinforcement bar of the cladding panel;

FIG. 11 represents a variant of the embodiment of FIG. 10; and

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of an anchoring device with the ends ofthe counter member being bent.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The anchoring device of the present invention is primarily characterizedby a fastening element comprising a supporting member and an essentiallyparallel counter member with the supporting member and the countermember being spaced at a distance over a part of a respectivelongitudinal dimension of the supporting member and the counter member.The distance corresponds at least to the thickness of a band, that ispassed through a space corresponding to the distance between thesupporting member and the counter member, whereby a section of the bandis bent directly above said supporting member.

The primary advantages of the anchoring device of the present inventionare firstly the greatly facilitated mounting of the anchoring deviceonto the cladding panel and secondly the improved force introduction anddistribution in the cladding panel. Since special bending devices arenot needed the necessary working time at the installation site isreduced resulting in a facilitated and faster mounting, since thebending step is no longer depending on the working method and skills ofthe work man.

The anchoring device is further improved such that a simple horizontalsliding of the band relative to the fastening elements of the claddingpanel and/or the fastening positions at the construction surface, forexample, the building wall, is made possible.

Also, the present invention provides a greatly improved bolt connectionof the band over the prior art such that a faster adjustment of the bandlength is possible and the complicated mounting of the band with the aidof an abutment means for securing the bolt, which requires holding withone hand the abutment means behind the band in the confined space of arecess of the cladding panel, is avoided.

This is achieved with the present invention by providing the band andthe bolt in the form of a bayonet locking device whereby the bolt isformlocked by simply being inserted into one of the holes of the band. Afurther preferred embodiment of this bayonet locking device is toprovide the holes of the band with respective cutouts, preferably at theupper edge of the holes and equipping the outer mantle surface of thebolts with at least two projections in the shape of the cutouts of theholes. The projections are arranged one after another in an axialdirection of the bolt, whereby the distance between the projectionsapproximately corresponds to the thickness of the band.

In order to ensure an equal distance between the supporting member inthe form of an angled piece and the counter piece over the entiredesired length, the counter piece is preferably in the form of anessentially planar plate or in the form of an angled piece with itshorizontal leg imbedded in the material of the cladding panel. For thesecure attachment of the anchoring device in the cladding panel it isexpedient to provide the side ends of the angled pieces or the platewith anchoring means for being anchored in the material of the claddingpanel. The means may be, for example, in the form of bolts which extendpast the side openings of the counter piece. As an alternative, theanchoring means may be in the form of profile irons protruding throughthe back wall of the cladding panels. They are preferably in the form ofU-shaped profile irons. Another embodiment encompasses means in the formof shackles being welded to the inner side of the angled piece whichextends into the cladding panel. A further anchoring method is providedin which the ends of the counter piece are bent sideways at an angle. Itis also possible to provide a plurality of bent end portions.

In order to improve the force introduction and the force distribution inthe cladding panels, it is suggested to pass the bolts through twistedflaps and clamp the flaps between an abutment means and the plate whichserves as the counter member. In a further preferred embodiment whichascertains an especially favorable force introduction and distributionin the cladding panel, the counter member comprises a vertical portionthat transmutes into an upper portion which is in the form of asemi-circular section extending into the material of the cladding panel.The inner diameter of the semi-circular section is selected such that ittightly engages a reinforcement bar. In order to ascertain the defineddistance between the angled piece and the counter member, it isexpedient to provide the angled piece and the counter member with twoscrews and two nuts with which they are connected and clamped together.In a further embodiment, the screws may be in the form of the threadedbolts which also serve as the anchoring device onto which the angledpiece is placed and secured by nuts. The space through which the band ispassed is defined by the distance between the angled piece and thecounter member and may be created by form-pressing at least one of theaforementioned parts or by spacing elements.

The bolt, which is introduced into the hole of the band and onto whichthe pulling force of the cladding panel acts, may be in the form of ascrew and a respective nut which is threaded on to it. In allembodiments, the lower edge of the angled portion and the counter memberis resting on the head of the screw and the nut or the cylindricalsurface of the bolt. It is advantageous that the anchoring meansfrictionally engage the reinforcement bars. This prevents or counteractsthe generation of cracks in the cladding panels in the area of theanchoring means.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will now be described in detail with the aid ofseveral specific embodiments utilizing FIGS. 1 through 12.

The embodiment of FIG. 1 represents an anchoring device 1, comprising aflat band 2 of an essentially rectangular cross-sectional shape that isprovided with spaced holes 3 arranged one after another in alongitudinal direction. A bolt 4 is inserted into one of the holes 3. Inthis variant, the bolt 4 is formed as a screw 14 with a nut 14'. Theband 2 is passed through a supporting member 5 in the form of an angledpiece and a second angled piece 6. The angled pieces 5, 6 each have ahorizontal leg 5' and 6' and a vertical leg 5'' and 6''. The horizontalleg 6' of the angled piece 6 is imbedded in the material of a claddingpanel 7. Two bolts 8 and 9 that are passed through openings at theopposite ends of the angled pieces 5 and 6 are also imbedded in thematerial of the cladding panel. They are provided with bolt heads 8' and9' respectively for a secure anchoring in the cladding panel 7. Theangled pieces 5 and 6 are form-pressed such that their vertical legs 5''and 6'' are spaced at a distance (a) over a part of their respectivelongitudinal dimension, but abut at their respective opposite ends wherethe bolts are passed through. The distance (a) is selected such that itcorresponds at least to the thickness (d) of the band 2 in order to beable to slide the band 2 in a vertical direction through the spacecreated by the distance (a) between the vertical legs 5'' and 6''. Thelength (1) of that space is selected such that it is longer than thewidth (w) of the band 2. This permits a horizontal sliding movement ofthe band 2 between the angled pieces 5 and 6, even when the angled piece5 is clamped to the angled piece 6 via nuts 10 that are screwed onto thethreaded portions 8'' and 9'' of the bolts 8 and 9. Thereby a horizontaladjustment is easily achieved, even when the cladding panel is alreadyattached, simply by sliding the band 2 sideways in its horizontaldirection.

The lower edge of the respective vertical legs 5'' and 6'' are restingon the screw 14 and the nut 14'. The head of the screw 14 is disposed ina recess 7' provided at the back wall of the cladding panel 7. The band2, above the angled piece 5, is bent out of its plane that initially isparallel to the cladding panel 7. The angled piece 5 serves as a bendingedge for this bending step. A threaded bolt 12 is welded to the upperend of the band 2 which interacts with a fastening part not representedin the drawing. The cladding panel 7 is provided with a reinforcementbar 13 which is looped around the bolts 8 and 9 in a tightly fittingmanner. Besides the resulting reinforcement, this arrangement alsoserves to better distribute the forces acting on the cladding panel 7and to relieve the bolts 8 and 9.

The embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4 differs from the one represented inFIGS. 1 and 2 such that between the angled pieces 5 and 6 spacingelements 11 are provided which create the distance (a) between thevertical legs 5'' and 6''. A form pressing step, as mentioned before forFIG. 1, is therefore not necessary. As can be seen in FIG. 4, the upperend of the band 2 may be formed as a threaded sleeve 15 into which athreaded bolt 16 of a fastening part may be screwed. Numerals in FIGS.1, 2 and FIGS. 3, 4 are identical when corresponding to the same parts.

In a further embodiment according to FIG. 5, the angled piece 5 isprovided with a counter piece 17 which has a vertical leg 17'' extendingparallel to the leg 5'' of the angled piece 5. An upper portion of thecounter piece 17 is bent to form a semi-circular portion 17' whichextends into the material of the cladding panel 7. The inner diameter ofthe semi-circular portion 17' is selected such that the portion 17'tightly engages the reinforcement bar 13.

When mounting the embodiments of FIGS. 1 through 5, the screw 14 isinserted into one of the holes 3 of the band 2, that corresponds to thedesired length of the anchoring device 1, and the nut 14' is screwedonto the screw. The band 2 is then arranged between the angled pieces 5and 6 or the counter piece 17 such that the lower edge of the verticallegs 5'' and 6'' or 17'' are resting on the head of the screw 14 and thenut 14'. The angled pieces 5 and 6 or the counter piece 17'' are thenbrought into contact via the nuts 10 on the threaded sections 8'' and9'' of the bolts 8 and 9, whereby spacing elements 11 are used, ifnecessary. The vertical legs 5'' and 6'' or 17'' are spaced at thedesired distance (a) so that by pulling the band 2 in an upwarddirection the contact of the screw 14 and the nut 14' at the angledpieces 5 and 6 is ensured. The band 2 is entirely flat up to this point.The upper portion of the band 2 is subsequently bent away from thecladding panel 7 by using the angled piece 5 as a bending edge.

When loading the anchoring device 1 with the suspended cladding panel 7,a pulling force is generated in the band 2 because the weight of thecladding panel 7 is transferred via the bolts 8 and 9 to the angledpieces 5 and 6 which are resting on the screw 14 and the nut 14'. In theembodiment according to FIG. 5, the bolts 8 and 9 are relieved due tothe frictional connection of the counter piece 17 and the reinforcementbar 13.

The embodiment of FIG. 6a through 6c shows an inventive anchoring device1 in which the band 2 and the bolt 19 are designed as a bayonet lockingdevice, in which the bolt 19 is formlocked when inserted into the hole18 of the band 2. In the shown example the band 2 is equipped with holes18 having at their upper end a cutout 18', as may be seen in FIG. 6b.

An essentially cylindrical bolt 19 is inserted into the hole 18 of theband 2. On the outer mantle surface the bolt 19 is equipped with twoprojections 19' which are arranged one after another in an axialdirection of the bolt 19 (cf. FIG. 6c). The distance (s) between the twoprojections corresponds to the thickness (d) of the band 2. All theother parts are identical to the parts in the FIG. 2 and have thereforethe same numerals.

The mounting of the anchoring device 12 represented in FIG. 6 is easierand faster than for the arrangement with the screw 14 and the nut 14'.The angled piece 5 may already be clamped against the angled piece 6when the band 2 is inserted into the space between the angled pieces 5and 6. According to the desired length of the anchoring device 1, thebolt 19 is inserted into one of the holes 18 such that a projection 19'slides through the cutout 18'. Then the bolt 19 is rotated, for example,180° about its longitudinal axis (cf. representation in FIG. 6a). Sincethe band 2 is pulled upward and is then bent above the angled piece 5the cutout 18' is now located between the vertical legs of the angledpiece 5 and 6 so that an accidental unlocking of the bolt 19 isprevented. The inventive bayonet locking device, in comparison with ascrew and nut assembly, is easier to mount and allows for a fasteradjustment of the length of the band 2 during the mounting step becausethe thread-less bolt is only to be inserted and locked by rotating itinto its locking position. This embodiment has also the advantage thatthe recess 7' in the cladding panel 7 may be designed smaller because afurther countering means, for example, a threaded nut, is not necessaryand the space that has to be provided for reaching and holding the nutduring the mounting step is unneeded. Since the space requirements forthe recess 7' may be kept at a minimum, the spacial arrangement of thereinforcement bars for reinforcement purposes, which is necessary inmost cases, is not negatively affected. Also, the production of thebayonet locking device does not require expensive cutting and machiningsteps such as the cutting of a thread, so that the bayonet lockingdevice, the producing and the mounting steps included, is simpler andless expensive.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show an anchoring device 1 in which the sides of theangled piece 5 and the counter piece which is formed as a plate 20 aresupported by two profile irons 21 and 22. For this purpose the U-shapedprofile irons 21 and 22 each have an opening which corresponds to thecross-section of the angled piece 5 and the plate 20. It can be seen inFIG. 8, that the profile irons 21 and 22 are imbedded in the material ofthe cladding panel 7, whereby they are additionally secured by thereinforcement bars 13. They protrude slightly from the back of thecladding panel 7. Between the angled piece 5 and the plate 20, the band2 is passed through, which is also equipped with holes 18 and respectivecutouts 18', as shown in FIGS. 6a-6c, and is fastened via a bolt 19. Asdescribed before, the bending of the upper portion of the band 2 is alsocarried out with the aid of the angled piece 5 serving as a bendingedge. The band 2 may horizontally slide between the two profile irons 21and 22 over the entire length.

In FIG. 9 another variant of the embodiment of FIG. 8 is shown, in whichthe band, as in FIGS. 1-5, is equipped with holes 3. A screw 14 isinserted into one of the holes 3. The screw head is positioned in therecess 7' of the cladding panel 7, while a nut 14' is screwed onto theother end. The angled piece 5 and the plate 20 are clampable againsteach other via screws 23 and nuts 23' which are guided through openingslocated close to the ends of the angled piece 5 and the plate 20. Ofcourse, a space between the angled piece 5 and the plate 20 ismaintained in order to allow the horizontal sliding of the band 2.

Another embodiment according to FIG. 10 shows an anchoring device 1 forthe cladding panel 7 in which a threaded bolt 24 with a screw head 24',a nut 25 which is threaded onto the bolt 14 and which serves as anabutment means, and a twisted flap 26 resting on the nut 25 are imbeddedin the cladding panel 7. The flap 26 is provided with an opening whichengages a reinforcement bar 13. A plate 27 is placed onto the bolt 14thereby forming the counter piece for the angled piece 5 and clampingthe flap 26 between itself and the nut 25. Onto the free end 24'' of thethreaded bolt 24 a nut 28 is threaded which is clamping the angled piece5 against the plate 27 while, of course, maintaining the distancebetween them in order to ensure the horizontal sliding of the band 2. Ascrew 14 is inserted in the band 2 and a nut 14' is threaded onto thescrew 14. In the aforementioned manner the lower edges of the plate 27and the angled piece 5 are resting on the screw head 14 and the nut 14'.

In the embodiment of FIG. 11 the band 2 is passed through between theangled pieces 5 and 6 and is provided with a screw 14 and a nut 14' onwhich the angled pieces 5 and 6 are resting. Hair pin-like shackles 29are welded to the inner side of the angled portions 6 which areextending downward at an angle and are engaging reinforcement bars 13.In order to clamp the angled piece 5 against the angled piece 6, thescrews 26 and the nuts 26' are provided at the sides of the angledpieces 5 and 6.

FIG. 12 represents an anchoring device 1 with a band 2 that is passedthrough between an angled piece 5 and a counter piece 30. The middlesection of the counter piece 30 is equipped with a planar portion 30'.Each of the side sections 30'' is bent twice at an angle of 45°. Throughthe outer bent edge 30''' a reinforcement 13 bar is passed. Thearrangement of the clamping means and the bolts is the same as in theembodiments described above.

All the aforementioned embodiments are provided with a supporting member5 preferably in the form of an angled piece which, due to its shape, issufficiently bending resistant to exactly maintain its shape during thebending step of the band 2. The band may be bent by hand without anyfurther auxiliary means, because, even for extremely heavy claddingpanels, the thickness of the cladding panels usually does not exceedapproximately 4 mm.

The present invention is, of course, in no way restricted to thespecific disclosure of the specification, examples and drawings, butalso encompasses any modifications within the scope of the appendedclaims.

What I claim is:
 1. In an anchoring device for fastening cladding panelsto a wall, said anchoring device comprising a flat band of a rectangularcross-section that is provided with spaced holes arranged one afteranother in a longitudinal direction, and with an upper end and thereofbeing connected to a fastening part, with a first bolt being insertedinto one of said holes for fastening said band to a fastening elementthat is to be connected to said cladding panel, the improvementwherein:said fastening element comprises a supporting member and anessentially parallel counter member, with said supporting member andsaid counter member being spaced from one another at a distance over atleast a portion of a respective longitudinal dimension of saidsupporting member and said counter member, with said distancecorresponding at least to a thickness of said band, with said band beingpassed through a space corresponding to said distance and with a sectionof said band being bendable directly above said supporting member; andsaid supporting member is formed as a first angled piece having arespective essentially horizontal leg and a respective essentiallyvertical leg having a recess corresponding to said distance andextending over a portion of said longitudinal dimension of saidsupporting member.
 2. An anchoring device according to claim 1, in whichsaid portion in said longitudinal dimension is greater than a width ofsaid band so that said band is slidable in the direction of said width.3. An anchoring device according to claim 1, in which said countermember is formed as a planar plate.
 4. An anchoring device according toclaim 3, in which said planar plate, at ends thereof in a longitudinaldirection, is equipped with fastening means.
 5. An anchoring deviceaccording to claim 4, in which said counter member has openings and saidfastening means are in the form of second bolts that extend through saidopenings of said counter member, said openings being arranged at ends ofsaid counter member in a longitudinal direction thereof.
 6. An anchoringdevice according to claim 5, in which said bolts have a threaded portiononto which said supporting member is placed and fastened via nuts.
 7. Ananchoring device according to claim 5, further comprising twisted flapsthrough which said second bolts are passed, with said flaps beingclamped between said planar plate and an abutment provided at saidsecond bolts.
 8. An anchoring device according to claim 4, in which saidfastening means are in the form of profile irons extending from a backside of said cladding panels.
 9. An anchoring device according to claim8, in which said profile irons are U-shaped.
 10. An anchoring deviceaccording to claim 4, further comprising reinforcement bars disposed insaid panel, said fastening means engaging in a formlocking manner saidreinforcement bars.
 11. An anchoring device according to claim 5, inwhich said fastening means are formed as bent edges of said countermember.
 12. An anchoring device according to claim 1, in which saidcounter member is formed as a second angled piece having a secondessentially horizontal leg that is imbedded into the material of saidcladding panel.
 13. An anchoring device according to claim 12, in whichsaid angled piece, at ends thereof in a longitudinal direction, isequipped with fastening means.
 14. An anchoring device according toclaim 13, in which said fastening means are in the form of third boltsthat extend through openings of said counter member, said openings beingarranged at ends of said counter member in a longitudinal directionthereof.
 15. An anchoring device according to claim 14, in which saidbolts have threaded portions onto which said supporting member is placedand fastened via nuts.
 16. An anchoring device according to claim 13, inwhich said fastening means are in the form of shackles that are weldedto said angled pieces.
 17. An anchoring device according to claim 13, inwhich said fastening means are engaged in a formlocking manner byreinforcement bars.
 18. An anchoring device according to claim 1, inwhich said counter member has a vertical section that, at an upper endthereof, transmutes into a semi-circular section, an inner diameter ofwhich is selected such that said semi-circular section engages areinforcement bar in a tight fit.
 19. An anchoring device according toclaim 1, in which said supporting member and said counter member areconnectable and clampable to one another via two screws and respectivenuts.
 20. An anchoring device according to claim 19, in which saidscrews are in the form of threaded portions of said bolts, onto whichthreaded portions said supporting member is placed and fastened vianuts.
 21. An anchoring device according to claim 1, in which saiddistance that creates a space between said supporting member and saidcounter member, through which space said band is passed, is formed byrecesses in at least one of said supporting and counter members.
 22. Ananchoring device according to claim 1, in which said distance is createdby spacing elements.
 23. An anchoring device according to claim 1, inwhich said first bolts, extending through said holes of said band, arein the form of screws having a nut fastened thereto.
 24. An anchoringdevice according to claim 23, in which a respective lower edge of saidsupporting member and said counter member are resting on top of saidscrew and said nut.
 25. An anchoring device according to claim 1, inwhich said band and said first bolts interact in the form of a bayonetlocking device such that said first bolt, when inserted into one of saidholes of said band, is formlocked.
 26. An anchoring device according toclaim 25, in which said holes of said band have cutouts and said bolts,on an outer mantle surface thereof, are provided with at least tworespective projections, with said projections being arranged, spaced ata distance from one another, in an axial direction of said bolt, withsaid distance corresponding approximately to said thickness of saidband.
 27. An anchoring device according to claim 26, in which saidcutouts are on upper edges of said holes.
 28. An anchoring deviceaccording to claim 25, in which a respective lower edge of saidsupporting member and said counter member are resting on top of acylinder surface of said bolt.
 29. In an anchoring device for fasteningcladding panels to a wall, said anchoring device comprising a flat bandof a rectangular cross-section that is provided with spaced holesarranged one after another in a longitudinal direction, and with anupper end thereof being connected to a fastening part, with a first boltbeing inserted into one of said holes for fastening said band to afastening element that is to be connected to said cladding panel, theimprovement wherein:said band and said first bolts interact in the formof a bayonet locking device such that said first bolt, when insertedinto one of said holes of said band, is formlocked.